According to media reports, Steven Woolfe was punched, hit his head and collapsed some time later

Receive the latest national-international updates in your inbox

UK Independence Party's Steven Woolfe was taken to a hospital after the clash during a meeting of party lawmakers at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France.

A European Parliament member from Britain's right-wing U.K. Independence Party said Thursday he is conscious and "feeling brighter" after collapsing following what the party called "an altercation" with colleagues.

Steven Woolfe — the front-runner to be UKIP's next leader — was taken to a hospital after the clash during a meeting of party lawmakers at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. Party leader Nigel Farage said Woolfe's condition was serious.

According to media reports, Woolfe was punched, hit his head and collapsed some time later.

In a statement released by the party several hours after the incident, Woolfe said a CT scan had revealed he did not have a blood clot on the brain.

An image published by ITV News showed a man resembling Woolfe apparently unconscious on a walkway inside the Strasbourg building, just outside the parliament chamber.

Founded in 1993 with the goal of removing Britain from the European Union, UKIP has moved from the fringes of British politics to a position of serious influence. Over the past few years the party has won over large numbers of Conservative and Labour voters by appealing to concerns about globalization and large-scale immigration.

UKIP was instrumental in getting Britain to hold a referendum on EU membership, which ended in a June 23 vote for the U.K. to leave the 28-nation bloc.

He was prevented from running to replace Farage in the leadership contest won by James because party officials said he missed the application deadline by 17 minutes.

Woolfe, who turned 49 on Thursday, said recently that he had considered joining the Conservative Party because he was "enthused" by new Prime Minister Theresa May's commitment to social reform. He said he decided to remain with UKIP because working-class people "need to have a voice against the elites."

UKIP has just one seat out of 650 in Britain's House of Commons, but — despite its vociferous opposition to the EU and all it stands for — it holds more than 20 seats in the bloc's parliament of 751 seats.